Former Alloway Township Municipal Building, known to many as the White House, will be demolished

View full sizeSunbeam file photoThe former Alloway Municipal Building, known to many as the White House, will be demolished.

ALLOWAY TWP. — The former township municipal office, known also by some as the White House, has been officially slated for demolition.

After about two years of looking into getting the East Main Street structure moved or preserved proved unsuccessful, township committee decided here Thursday to proceed with having the building knocked down.

“My take is this is currently an eyesore and something we have to continue to maintain,” said Mayor Joseph Fedora. “I personally see no reason to keep it. It would be something we’d have to continue to maintain and budget for.”

Back in 2009 the dilapidated 12 foot by 15 foot structure was offered up to the community for $1 — with the stipulation that the buyer remove it from township property — after township officials said they no longer wanted the burden of maintaining it.

The township later discovered that the White House could not be sold for a nominal price, and sought to raise their bid to $500. Residents then raised concerns about the historic nature of the former municipal office, and requested that the idea of preserving the building be further investigated.

The issue has remained somewhat on the township’s back burner ever since.

On Thursday, Fedora read a letter into public record from former mayor Ed Masker, who was mayor when the issue of preserving the building originally surfaced.

In the letter Masker states his objections to the building being demolished, and requests that it be preserved in some way.

“I object to the demolition of the former municipal office, the White House. I feel that this building could be moved to another site,” Masker states in the letter. “It may not be historically significant yet, but it is part of Alloway’s history and will be something that future generations look back on.”

Officials have said that the building was built in the early 1900s, and was once used as a slaughterhouse, a clerk’s office and the fire department for the township.

Despite Masker’s letter, the township committee remained in unanimous agreement that it’s time for the structure to come down.

“We have discussed and kicked this mule I don’t know how many times. We went through this, we got prices, we contacted people,” said Committeeman William “Rex” Cobb. “It is a health hazard... My feeling is we should not delay any more time. I just feel that it has to come down and it has to be quickly. The time has come.”

Deputy Mayor K. Myrle Patrick was also in agreement, and said the community has had plenty of time to voice an interest in the property.

“I don’t see a reason to keep it,” said Patrick. “We’ve had it out there for year; I mean we’ve offered it to the community and no one’s budged on it.”

Fedora said that there has not been a date set for the demolition as of yet, but added, “It’s going to happen very soon.”